Of Muggles, Spilt Coffee and Love
by chipzixo
Summary: It was all wrong, so completely wrong. He knew nothing about her except she was a student who shared a flat with an eccentric man who didn't mind to greet strangers topless. She was a muggle, he was a wizard. And yet, it still felt right to Percy.
1. Chapter 1

**Here it is! My PercyxAudrey love story :) I am unaware of Audrey's actual blood status, so she's a muggle. Simply cause I think it'd be awesome :) Anywho -**

**DISCLAIMER; I don't own anything within the Harry Potter franchise :)**

_The Weasley and The Muggle.  
Chapter One - Spilt Coffee_

Percy Weasley hated walking through crowded streets. Yet, his flat was - where else? - on a street, which was generally crowded. Oh, what fun he had every morning trying to get to work, then trying to get home later that day.

It was Tuesday afternoon. He was charging down said street, pushing past various muggles to get home, as per usual. He never uttered a word of apology - they were in his way, there was nothing to apologise for. Infact, in Percy's opinion, they were the ones who should have been apologising to _him_. He was usually very polite - but he was entitled to his own opinion, and he _hated_ walking through crowded streets. Why he couldn't just apparate was beyond him - but apparently he wasn't _allowed. _And, as Percy always said, rules were rules.

His mind wandered to what had happened that day, laughing softly to himself as only one thought occured to him.

Not a lot, really.

Not a lot ever happened in his office. It was well paid and it made him feel important - but mostly it was just paperwork, sending letters and carrying memos and problems from office to office. Generally, the further up you got, the less you did. Not that he was complaining. Some of the ways in which people used magic improperly were simply _hilarious _and he liked ordering people about - which seemed to be all he did, these days.

He was still pondering this as he continued to push past the people in the street, before his attention was stolen by something hot and a cry from a woman he didn't know.

"Oh! I'm so sorry - really, I'm sorry, leave me - go on, sorry -"

Percy looked down at the scrambling woman at his feet, desperately attempting to pick up various papers. Sighing, he knelt down, pushed his glasses up his nose and began to pick up the scattered papers on the pavement.

"Oh, no - really, it's fine - you carry on -"

Smiling slightly, he looked up. So did she. Her grey-blue eyes were framed by square black glasses, her blushing face surrounded by a long, chesnut-brown bob. As she caught his gaze, her already pink cheeks darkened a little before she averted her eyes back to the papers on the floor, hap-hazardly pushing them together in a messy pile, missing some and pushing others into the path of the passing muggles.

Percy giggled in his head. This muggle was just _too _clumsy.

When she lifted her hand, he quickly pulled the messy papers away from her, efficiently patting them all together into a neat-ish pile, before picking them up and pushing himself up until he was upright. Her eyes followed him, looking up through her eyelashes as he brushed the dust from his muggle-clothes with one hand. He smiled down at her, offering the same hand out to help her up. She took it, still blushing.

"Thankyou," she said quietly, quickly looking to her feet, beginning to brush herself down. It was then Percy noticed the bent, polystyrene coffee cup on the floor at her feet, partnered with the rather warm, wet, muddy stain on his shirt, mirrored by the one on hers. He half-heartedly tried to push the stain away with his empty hand. The woman finished straightening her clothes, and - noticing the stain on her blouse - let out a defeated groan. She looked up to Percy, who was still pushing the stain in an attempt to clear it. Her furrowed eyebrows shot up her forehead as her eyes widened and her arms shot out, despite the fact that she had no clue what she was going to do, only emphasized by her stuttered apology.

"Ohmygosh!" she said quickly, waving her arms around and advancing towards Percy, "I am _so _sorry, I mean - oh, I'm sorry - oh, look at your shirt! I'm sorry -"

This time, Percy couldn't help but giggle, cutting the woman's desperate apologies short as she sighed and looked at him.

"Don't worry," he said, "I was only going home. It's only up there. It was my fault anyway - I wasn't paying attention."

"No, it's me. I'm too clumsy for my own good." she said, quietly. He smiled and she blinked what seemed to be very slowly, pushing her toe around the floor and biting her lip.

"Where do you live?" he asked, as his mind began to wander, "Is it far?"

She looked up at him again through her eyelashes. It made her look so young - he couldn't help but smile softly.

"Not too far - " she began, just as quietly, "do you know Pembroke Road?"

Percy chewed his lip. Pembroke Road was miles away.

"Listen - my car is just down the road -"

Her eyes widened as she lifted her head. "No - really, it's okay, i'll walk -"

He giggled slightly. "Like that?" she looked away again, "It's okay if you don't want a lift - but I don't mind. Just thought I'd save you the embarrasment of walking through the streets with a coffee stain down your front."

She looked down at the stain on her shirt and for the first time, smiled. She looked up, biting her lip a little.

"That'd be nice. Thankyou."

He nodded in the opposite direction to the way he was originally heading, motioning for the woman to follow. She did so gingerly, following behind.

They were headed to a carpark at the other end of the road where Percy parked the car that Ginny and Hermione had insisted on him getting since he was living in London. Why, he had never understood, but in the end he had bought the damn thing just to shut them up. It wasn't a big or flashy, it was just a little black car. It did the trick, anyhow.

He unlocked it and told the woman to get inside. She did so, and he started the engine, backing out of the car park and onto the road in the summer evening. As they were smoothly trundling along, Percy realized that in his head he was still referring to the other person in the car as 'the woman'. He didn't even know her name.

"I'm Percy, by the way," he said, flickering a glance at her, "Percy Weasley."

Out of the corner of her eye, he could see her looking at him. "I'm Audrey. Audrey Green."

"Nice to meet you," he finished, flashing a smile. Audrey. That was a pretty name. Underused - in his opinion, anyway, "So, where were you headed?"

Audrey smiled. "Home, actually."

Percy nodded. "Me too. Been at work all day."

"What do you do?"

Percy had regretted saying it the moment he had said it. He made some unconvincing 'uhh' noises to buy himself some time, but - thinking quick - he settled on "I work in an office." Inconspicuous enough. "You?"

Audrey turned to look out the window, "I'm a trainee psychiatrist." She said, then turned to him, as if waiting for him to say something. He glanced at her again.

"Interesting."

Audrey scoffed. "You can say what you like. I'm used to it."

Percy frowned, confused. "What?"

"I'm a shrink. I get it. Laugh it up."

Percy laughed softly as they turned into Pembroke Road. "No, I genuinely think it's interesting. What number?"

Audrey turned to him properly this time, one eyebrow lowering steadily. "158. Seriously?"

Percy looked out the window to see the numbers on the houses, before slowing down as he saw number 150. "Yeah," he said slowly, "the human mind _is _interesting, in my opinion - is this it?"

Audrey looked where he was looking, then said "Yeah." He pulled up on the kerb, before turning to face Audrey, whose frown was slowly fading.

"Cool." she said, apparently unable to think of anything else, "I think so too - well, that's why I'm studying it." She smiled softly, and Percy couldn't help but smile back. She sighed heavily.

"Bye then, Audrey. Don't forget your papers." He handed her the papers from the backseat and she bit her lip.

"You could come in, if you like." she said quietly, "Coffee - as thankyou for the lift. And I might have a shirt - " her eyes widened slightly "I mean, my flatmate might have a shirt, not me." She blushed again. He giggled. Again. Percy couldn't remember the last time he had giggled so much. Laughed, of course, but never _giggled_.

"That'd be lovely." He said, "If that's okay with your flatmate, of course."

She waved her arm at the house. "He won't care. He's probably still at work."

Percy smiled. "Okay then. Thanks."

* * *

**I apologise for the length :) It's a bit short. But hey; quality - not quantity!**

**:) I love these two! I really do! **

**And I also apologise for the fact that this contradicts with my other PercyxAudrey fic, 'cause she's a witch in that :)**

**Thanks for reviewing, guys!**


	2. Chapter 2

**GOOD LORD, I DO BELIEVE I AM ALIVE.  
:'D  
****Look guys! Story! Hahahahahaha! Of Muggles, Spilt Coffee and Love is BACK ON THE ROAAD.  
****for now :')  
hey to anyone who's actually read the first chapter and still actually cares - i applaud you, i really do. I know it's been forever, but i'm in a really updatey mood today :D I've updated _It Runs Through The Family, _and I've written four chapters (YES, FOUR CHAPTERS) of my new fic, _And Then He Met Tonks, _but i'm not letting myself upload that until either this or IRTTF is finished. Which could be a while. ANDD I also have a new (really long) one-shot that's nearly finished, called _The Bet_!  
****YAAY.  
Anyway, I'll stop rambling now. Thanks for reading, and don't forget to review! They make me smile like this xD  
****Much love xx**

**

* * *

**

"Um, just wait there while I - oh Lord, I can never - why do keys have to be so damn confusing?"

She looked over her shoulder and smiled bashfully. Percy smiled politely back. He'd never seen someone take so long to find her keys.

"Ah ha!"

Apparently, she'd found the right one, signalled by the loud, triumphant exclamation she cried as she slid the key onto the lock. Why she had so many keys anyway, Percy didn't know. It was like she had three separate houses.

She pushed the door open and removed the key, slipping the set back into her pocket. She turned, beckoning Percy in. He followed her into the hallway, still holding her papers. He'd figured earlier that she probably didn't need the added obstacle of trying to hold a massive pile of papers whilst looking for her keys and opening the door.

"It's just up here," she said, leading Percy up the stone stairway. He quickly realised she'd have to look for yet another key in a second.

She, however, didn't, and kept walking until they reached the next floor. She turned at the top and walked to the end of the corridor until she came to the flat at the end - Number 9 - and dived into her pocket for her keys once more.

Percy smiled.

* * *

"How do you like your coffee?"

"Milk, one sugar, please."

Percy looked around the living room he was sat in, after finally getting into the flat. It was modest - nothing flashy. The walls were a creamy beige and he was sat on a chocolate-brown leather sofa, decorated with creamy-coloured and chocolate-coloured fluffy cushions. There was a creamy rug on the wooden floor with a coffee table on top, and a small television sat opposite Percy. Either side of it was a door, where he guessed the bedrooms were. There was a window-seat at the end of the room, once again decorated with cushions and a vase of white lillies on the window-sill.

Behind him was the attached kitchen, next to the front door. In there was a small table and chairs - where Audrey and her flatmate ate. He hadn't gotten a good look at the kitchen, as he'd been ushered into the living room straight away, but he had caught that the walls were a light blue. There was a wall with a window in separating the kitchen and living room.

Suddenly, the door to it was kicked open from inside, and out emerged Audrey Green, armed with two coffees in matching, spotted mugs. Percy smiled as she offered him his.

"Thankyou."

She put hers down on the coffee table opposite the empty seat on the sofa, but never sat down. Instead, she clicked her fingers and pointed at Percy. "Shirt."

"You really don't have to - I mean, I'll be fine-"

"No, no, really it's fine," she said as she walked away through the door on the right side of the television, "I think Eric's stuff should fit you, but I don't know if it's really your style..." She trailed away. Percy laughed.

"That's okay," Percy called, "I don't think I really have a 'style' anyway."

"Oh, really? Well this should be fine then."

She returned holding a grey t-shirt aloft that was, indeed, about Percy's size. On it was a pink Mr. Men character and the caption 'Mr. Perfect'. Percy tried very hard not to react.

"Th-thankyou." He stammered.

It was the worst t-shirt he'd ever seen in his life.

* * *

The worst thing was, it fitted. And she'd given him it out of the goodness of her heart - he couldn't just decline.

Percy stood infront of the floor-length mirror in Audrey's modest bathroom, looking at his new 'Mr. Perfect' shirt. Percy was the shirt-and-jumper kind of guy, not the Mr-men-t-shirt kind of guy. It made him feel uncomfortable.

"Does it fit?"

"Uh- yeah!" Percy called back, "Thanks a lot!"

Tucking his coffee-stained shirt under his arm, he left the bathroom, straight back into the living room. He grinned at Audrey on the couch.

"What do you think?"

She snorted into her coffee. "It's - well, what can I say? It's _perfect._"

Percy narrowed his eyes. "Ha-ha," he said sarcastically. Audrey giggled as he made his way back to his coffee.

"I'm sorry," she said, smiling, "but it's the only one he had that I thought would fit you. Seriously - that's one of the sensible ones!"

Percy smiled and nodded as he swallowed his coffee. "This Eric sounds like a fun guy."

Audrey laughed again. "Aww, no, he's lovely. This is his flat, technically - I just stay here whilst I'm studying."

"So how do you know him?" Percy asked, trying to sound innocent.

"From high school," Audrey replied, "we were best friends. Then he moved here - and, well, I followed."

She smiled into her coffee. Percy's heart sank a little for reasons he didn't quite understand. "Oh well - the things you do for love, hey?"

Audrey spluttered as she drank her coffee, as if trying to say something whilst still drinking. Slamming her coffee down on the table with some having spilt on her shirt - again -, she began to choke a little.

As she coughed, Percy sat in panic. He didn't know what to do. As far as he could see, he'd just killed this lovely, charmingly clumsy, quite beautiful muggle who'd invited him in out of nothing but politeness by asking about her lovelife. If that wasn't a warning to stay away, then he didn't know what was.

She soon stopped coughing, thankfully before he made the decision to slap her on the back. She laughed a little at the second coffee stain on her shirt.

"Oh, god, no," she said, looking at Percy, "me and Eric - I'm not - I mean, we're not - he's gay."

"Oh!" Percy giggled. Whether it was out of relief or amusement, he didn't quite know yet.

* * *

2 hours, 3 coffees and numerous biscuits later, Percy left Audrey's flat. Soon enough he was trundling back down to his own flat in his little car, still smiling inwardly at his afternoon.

Eric hadn't turned up - which Percy viewed both as a blessing and a curse. A blessing, because he probably would have wanted his shirt back, and Percy didn't fancy driving home topless. But it was also a curse, because he wanted to meet Eric - from his taste in clothes he seemed like quite a weirdo.

Audrey had showed Percy some of Eric's other clothes - there wasn't anything brown, black or beige in sight. Everything was mad colours and patterns and logos - there was even an unexpected dress. Audrey found this so amusing she almost collapsed. Percy smiled fondly at the memory.

And the best bit was, he'd have to go back to return the t-shirt.

Everyone wins.

He didn't really know if he liked Audrey yet - and by liked, he meant _fancied, _but that word made him sound six. Sure, she was lovely, and she was pretty, and she was adorably clumsy and cute. But they'd had one afternoon together. Surely that wasn't enough to decide?

Was it?

Percy pulled up in the car park near his building and began the walk back to his house. It had gotten a lot colder in the hours he'd spent with Audrey - the sun had set and the stars smiled down at him. He went to pull his coat close but then realised he hadn't had the sensibility to bring one - something which he mentally admonished himself for. It had just looked like such good weather when he'd left for work this morning.

He unlocked his own door considerably quicker than Audrey had unlocked hers, and entered his flat. He shut the door, threw his keys on the table next to the door with the phone on, and turned around into his living room. What he saw made him stop dead.

"I've been waiting for you."

"George! What the hell?"

Percy's younger brother grinned from ear to ear. "Nice shirt."

He narrowed his eyes, sending a cold glare in George's direction. "Shut up."

"Where'd you get that?" he asked, leaping up to follow Percy into the kitchen, "I'll get me some - sell them in the shop. Jokes you can wear - that's the future, that is!"

Percy ignored him. George continued. "No, but seriously - you didn't go to work in that, did you? I didn't think the head of the Improper Use of Magic Office was allowed to wear such fanciful atrocities."

"The what?"

George frowned. "The Improper Use of Magic Office - you know, where you work?"

"Oh, yeah. Right."

In all of the excitement, Percy had completely forgotten about his own life. Audrey was a muggle. He wasn't.

That felt weird.

George was still waiting for an answer. Percy shook his head. "No," he said, "I didn't go to work in this."

"Where the hell have you been, Perce?"

"Out. Sorry Mum, was I back after my curfew?"

"Oh. Funny. Leave the jokes to someone who knows what they're doing, yeah? Namely moi."

"You can't speak French."

"Do I care?"

Percy rolled his eyes. George was such a child.

"Anyway!" he said, getting back to the point, "where _have _you been? I mean, you've come back in a different shirt - a Quidditch match, maybe? Or some mad strip club?"

"What? No, George. I've been to neither of those places."

"Good. 'Cause if you had, you'd be getting seriously beaten up for not inviting me." He grinned, "So come on, where have you been?"

"At Audrey's." He hoped that didn't sound suspicious. George didn't keep track of Percy's friends, anyway - how was he to know there wasn't an Audrey?

"Audrey? Who's Audrey?"

"A friend."

"Oooooh!" George sang, with the air of a six-year-old, "_A friend._"

"Yes. A friend. Now go away please, I'd like a bath."

"And when did you meet this friend?" asked George, jumping into Percy's path. Percy groaned.

"This afternoon - not that it's any of your business."

"Oooooh!" George sang again, at a higher pitch, "A _new _friend!"

"Get lost, George."

"Do you loooove her?"

"No, I do not love Audrey."

George gasped like a schoolgirl. "You _do_! You always were a terrible liar, Percy."

Percy looked straight into his brother's eyes, grabbing him by the shoulders. "Get. Lost."

He let go, and George stepped backwards, still grinning. "Oooh, alright. I'm bored now anyway. No need to get defensive over your new _girlfriend._"

But before Percy could hit him, George apparated away.


	3. Chapter 3

Percy knocked on the door of flat 9 in 158 Pembroke Road tentatively, wiping his hands on his jeans and straightening his glasses. Then, he looked around the plain hallway, waiting for Audrey to open the door.

He couldn't decide whether he was nervous or excited. And he couldn't justify either emotion.

Finally, after about 5 minutes - typical clumsy muggle, of course - Percy heard the locks on the other side of the door start to click and a muffled voice drifted through the wooden door, repeating something that Percy couldn't make out. He watched the door with raised eyebrows, 'Mr. Perfect' shirt in hand, before it swung open inwards, revealing someone Percy didn't expect.

For on the other side of the door of number 9 was not Audrey Green, but a man. A man with wet, dirty blonde hair plastered to his head, mainly his forehead as it swept down in a stupidly long fringe, in Percy's opinion. One eyebrow was arched above murky, pale green eyes and his lips were pursed on a clean-shaven chin. He was dressed in nothing but a towel from the waist down and droplets of water still clung to him - he'd obviously just got out of the shower.

Percy quickly averted his eyes, already uncomfortable. "Oh."

So, Audrey had a man in her flat. Probably her boyfriend. No big deal. Percy had no right to care who Audrey did or didn't let into her flat. He barely knew her, after all.

So why was he so uncomfortable?

The man leaned against the doorframe. "Yes?"

Percy coughed. "I... uh... yesterday... Audrey..."

"Audrey's at work."

"Okay, I'll erm, just come back later then..."

"Can I take a message, Percy?"

Percy's eyes shot back towards the man, whose pout had now twisted into a smirk and whose eyes were glittering with something Percy didn't want to know. His eyebrows shot up to his hairline. "Wh-what?"

"You are Percy, aren't you?" The man's eyebrows furrowed a little. Percy just nodded.

"Oh good. Well, I'll have my shirt back then, thank you." The blonde man grinned, as Percy gave himself a mental slap.

Of course. This was _Eric. _

"Oh," Percy sighed with something that felt uncannily like relief, grabbing the t-shirt from under his arm, "You must be Eric."

Eric hummed, eyeing the shirt. "Yeah," he agreed, "Audrey's flatmate. She told me all about the tall, albiet slightly ginger, stranger who rescued her yesterday."

Percy didn't know whether to be insulted or flattered. "Well... rescued? I hardly rescued-"

"Shh," Eric dismissed with a wave of his hand, "don't ruin it. Now..." He scanned Percy up and down, and seemed to be taking in every inch. This made Percy even more uncomfortable, and had to avert his eyes again, feeling a darker pink blush rise in his cheeks. In an attempt to diffuse the situation, he blindly held out the t-shirt. When Eric didn't take it, Percy slid his eyes to face the man. He was looking at the shirt in Percy's hand, frowning. Percy pushed it towards him, raising his eyebrows. Eric looked up to look at Percy's face.

"This never happened."

Percy frowned. "Excuse me?"

Eric's eyes grew wider, more insistent. "This. Never. Happened. Okay?" He pushed the shirt away. "Come back later. After four. Bye, stranger."

And he shut the door in Percy's face.

* * *

Still feeling confused, Percy eventually arrived in his office, succeeding in the task of talking to as little people as possible on his way in. He sat down behind his desk and sighed, running his hand through his curly red hair.

He pulled the first sheet of paper off the pile and looked at it blankly, trying to process the last half an hour.

Eric had obviously known who he was and why he was there, there was no genius to that. But why - why had he turned Percy away? And then told him to come back?

Percy didn't think of himself as particularly stupid - in fact, he had always believed his intelligence to be above average. Superior to the rest of his family, anyway. But he couldn't figure out what the hell was going through this odd, blonde man's head.

_"This never happened."_

So, what - he was just supposed to pretend he'd never met Eric?

And he had to go back later. After four.

"Hi Perce."

Percy looked up to see the lanky form of his youngest brother in the doorway. He managed a tight-lipped smile and a curt nod.

"Ron." He looked back to the desk.

"Ooh," Ron sighed, inviting himself in, "What's eating you?"

Percy raised his head to look at his brother through his glasses. "Nothing."

Ron laughed. "Oh, okay. Sure."

"What do you want, Ron?"

"Yeouch." Ron winced, "Alright. Just thought you might have some information about a new case we've got-"

"Actually, Ron, I'm really quite busy. Can we do this another time?" Percy kept his eyes firmly on his paperwork, hoping his brother would just walk out.

Ron raised both eyebrows. "Fine. Why? Thinking about your new girlfriend?"

Percy looked up so fast his glasses momentarily jumped off his nose. Ron grinned. Percy felt himself blushing.

"I do not have a new girlfriend."

Ron waved his hand dismissively. "Whatever. That's not what George says."

Percy narrowed his eyes. "Then George is a liar. You know as well as I do Ron, he's got a mind of a three year old."

"Generally, though, three year olds tend not to lie about stuff."

"Ron?"

The younger man hummed in response. Percy shuffled his papers and then turned back to his brother.

"Get lost."

* * *

New girlfriend, indeed. Audrey could hardly be counted as a friend, so far. He'd met her once. Once. She was just a woman who'd lent him a shirt after covering his own in coffee. She was nobody, nothing. Just some girl.

Some girl who Percy hadn't stopped thinking about since he'd met her in that street.

He felt like a teenager again, letting his emotions take over like this. Emotions which he had no right to be having, emotions that he wasn't even sure were really there. It was all wrong, so completely wrong, Percy's sensible side was telling him - she was clumsy, he was neat. She was a muggle, he was a wizard. They'd only known each other a day, if knowing was the right word. He knew nothing about her except she was a student who shared a flat with an eccentric man who didn't mind to greet strangers topless.

And yet, it still felt right to Percy.

He checked his watch as he climbed the stairs of 158 Pembroke Road for the second time that day. 4.30. Hopefully this would be a more suitable time for Eric.

Percy shook his head as he knocked on the door, the same butterflies he'd felt that morning returning. He mentally admonished himself.

This silliness had to stop.

Quicker than he'd expected, the door to flat 9 swung open, and for the second time that day, the wrong person stood in the doorframe.

Percy's expression fell to exasperation when he saw Eric standing in the doorway, now, thankfully, fully clothed. Both his t-shirt and jeans looked far too tight to be comfortable and his stupid long hair was now dry and styled to an extent which most people wouldn't bother to go to. The blonde man grinned at Percy's face and quickly turned to face over his shoulder, yelling "Audrey! It's for you!". Winking at the very confused Percy in the hallway, Eric swaggered back inside his flat.

He was still in view as he spoke to another person who Percy couldn't see. "There's a tall, ginger stranger waiting in the hallway for you."

Percy's hand automatically shot to his hair. Why was Eric so obsessed with it? He couldn't see anything wrong with it, really - the colour, anyway. He could live without the near-afro curls.

Quickly, another person came into the doorway. And for the first time that day, Percy smiled.

"Percy!"

Audrey grinned, the freckles on her nose crinkling. She was dressed in jeans and a shirt, her hair tied back in a tiny ponytail so only her fringe framed her face. Her pale eyes sparkled behind her glasses, and Percy momentarily forgot how to speak.

"Erm- hi, Audrey." He laughed nervously. "I just, erm - your t-shirt, I brought it back." He smiled again, a little helplessly, crossing his fingers that he'd regain the ability to form coherent sentences some time soon.

"Oh," she said, looking down at the t-shirt. "Thanks."

He held it out and she took it. She stared down at it in her hands and they stood in awkward silence.

Unhelpfully, the only word Percy's brain supplied him with was "Soo..."

Audrey smiled, her expression directed loosley at the floor. "Well then," she said quietly, "I guess... that's it."

Percy nodded, his brain still being ridiculously unhelpful. "Yeah."

Audrey smiled straight at him now. "I'll... I'll see you around then, Percy." If Percy hadn't known better, he'd say she looked a little sad.

As they stood in awkward silence again, Percy's eye was caught by something - no, _someone _appearing behind Audrey. Eric stood a little way behind her, still in Percy's view, looking straight at him and his expression reading '_what the hell are you doing?'. _His eyes were wide and insistent, his hands on his hips, one eyebrow arched. Percy had to stop his brow furrowing so that Audrey didn't notice.

Then, Eric began to mouth something Percy couldn't make out.

_Ask her out._

Oh. Right.

Wait... what?

Once again, his brain took far too long to register this, and before he knew it, Audrey was shutting the door with a quiet "Bye, Percy. It was nice meeting you."

He stuck his arm out instinctivley to stop it, marginally missing getting it trapped in the door. Before he knew it, he was standing actually _in _Audrey's flat, and she was looking at him with a mix of confusion and slight fear in her eyes. Percy laughed nervously. Eric covered his own giggle up with a cough as he returned to the sofa.

Audrey was still looking at Percy almost suspiciously. "Excuse me?"

Percy smiled in what he hoped wasn't a creepy way. "It's just..." He couldn't seem to get the words out. He didn't know what he was doing.

Was he asking her out? Did he want to ask her out?

Sure, she was pretty. But he didn't know her. Maybe he could get to know her? Did he want that?

Percy always was too indecisive for his own good. And he was running out of time.

"Yes?" Audrey asked insistently. Percy smiled nervously.

"It's just... I was wondering... if maybe..."

He took a deep breath, resigning himself to the fact he was actually going to do this. The next sentence, however, all came out as one word.

"?"

Audrey smiled. "What?"

Percy ran a hand through his hair. "I was wondering if you'd... you know, like to get a cup of coffee some time. With me. Seeing as I spilt yours yesterday."

He took a double take. Was Audrey _blushing_?

"Sure," she said quietly, looking at the floor, a definite pink flush rising in her cheeks, "i'd like that."

Percy looked up, feeling rather pleased with himself. But, as seemed to be the case lately, Eric was standing there behind Audrey once more, still looking dissatisfied. He tapped his watch. Percy tried not to scowl at the man.

"Erm.. tomorrow, then?"

Eric slapped his hand to his face silently. Audrey's expression fell. "Oh," she said, "it's just, I've got a class tomorrow-"

"How about now then?"

The suggestion had come from nowhere. Percy had never been so forward in his life.

Eric looked pleased, though. He held both thumbs up to Percy. Percy grinned.

Audrey was grinning too. "Oh!" she said, "Erm- yeah! Let me... wait there - no, come in. Let me just get my coat."

And with the flash of a smile, she turned away, stopping dead at the sight of Eric behind her.

"What are you doing there?"

Eric grinned from ear-to-ear. "Just taking an interest."

Audrey sighed and walked past him to what Percy presumed was her bedroom, as Eric walked back to his seat. Percy gingerly stepped in and closed the door over behind him.

"Blimey," came a voice from the sofa as Percy shut the door, "I thought you were never going to get the message."

Percy tried to think of a clever retort, but Eric didn't even look at him, instead concentrating on the television screen in front of him, still grinning like a maniac.


End file.
